Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of basal cell carcinoma: a GRADE approach for evidence evaluation and recommendations by the Italian Association of Medical Oncology
Paola Queirolo, Michela Cinquini, Giuseppe Argenziano, Franco Bassetto, Paolo Bossi, Andrea Boutros, Claudio Clemente, Vincenzo De Giorgi, Michele Del Vecchio, Roberto Patuzzo, Ketty Peris, Pietro Quaglino, Alessia Reali, Iris Zalaudek, Francesco Spagnolo
Abstract
•This AIOM Guideline on BCC provides key recommendations for managing basal cell carcinoma.•It covers clinical and pathological diagnosis, treatment and follow-up.•Addressing systemic treatments for BCC unresponsive to surgery/radiotherapy.•GRADE approach: transparent, evidence-based and comprehensive guidelines.•Expert consensus: panel of experts selected by AIOM contribute to priority aspects of BCC management. Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common form of cancer, with a high impact on the public health burden and social costs. Despite the overall prognosis for patients with BCC being excellent, if lesions are allowed to progress, or in a small subset of cases harboring an intrinsically aggressive biological behavior, it can result in local spread and significant morbidity, and conventional treatments (surgery and radiotherapy) may be challenging. When a BCC is not amenable to either surgery or radiotherapy with a reasonable curative intent, or when metastatic spread occurs, systemic treatments with Hedgehog inhibitors are available. These guidelines were developed, applying the GRADE approach, on behalf of the Italian Association of Medical Oncologists (AIOM) to assist clinicians in treating patients with BCC. They contain recommendations with regard to the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up, from primitive tumors to those locally advanced or metastatic, addressing the aspects of BCC management considered as priorities by a panel of experts selected by AIOM and other national scientific societies. The use of these guidelines in everyday clinical practice should improve patient care. Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) is the most common form of cancer, with a high impact on the public health burden and social costs. Despite the overall prognosis for patients with BCC being excellent, if lesions are allowed to progress, or in a small subset of cases harboring an intrinsically aggressive biological behavior, it can result in local spread and significant morbidity, and conventional treatments (surgery and radiotherapy) may be challenging. When a BCC is not amenable to either surgery or radiotherapy with a reasonable curative intent, or when metastatic spread occurs, systemic treatments with Hedgehog inhibitors are available. These guidelines were developed, applying the GRADE approach, on behalf of the Italian Association of Medical Oncologists (AIOM) to assist clinicians in treating patients with BCC. They contain recommendations with regard to the diagnosis, treatment and follow-up, from primitive tumors to those locally advanced or metastatic, addressing the aspects of BCC management considered as priorities by a panel of experts selected by AIOM and other national scientific societies. The use of these guidelines in everyday clinical practice should improve patient care.